"Little Free Reviveries" now offering on-demand emergency Narcan doses
MINNEAPOLIS — The first "Little Free Revivery" in Minneapolis is officially open for business. Stocked with boxes of naloxone and fentanyl testing strips, its creators hope it could be the first step in a game-changing direction.
The revivery itself is a simple concept. Located outside of the Episcopal Church of Minnesota at North Emerson Avenue and West Broadway Avenue in North Minneapolis, it will be free and unlocked to the public starting Thursday.
The idea for the project came from Twin Cities-based creative marketing agency Sixspeed. Company President Kevin Reilly said the hope to do something to get Narcan into the community when it became available for over-the-counter purchase in August.
"You have an individual responsibility as part of a community to try and solve problems," Reilly said. "This is a widespread epidemic."
Reilly said the idea quickly transformed into a partnership with Southside Harm Reduction Services. From there, the concept of the revivery was born.
"It just came out of a want to do more in the community. The opioid epidemic and overdose epidemic had touched all of us in some form or fashion," Reilly said. "Our hopes and dreams are that there's dozens of these up across the city very soon as Narcan becomes more widely available."
Leaders at the Episcopal Church of Minnesota say they were happy to be the home of the first Minneapolis site.
"It was really a no-brainer," said Communications Commissioner Emilia Seay-Allen. "We're in this neighborhood that does unfortunately see a lot of opioid abuse. If there's one really simple way that our building can be useful to counteract that, we are more than happy to do it."
Southside Harm Reduction Services says between 2020 and 2021, opioid overdoses in Minneapolis skyrocketed by more than 40%.
"It's very prevalent. It's every corner that you walk on. We see a lot of it at the bus stops, we see it behind buildings," said Nelly Petersen of Continuum Care Services, located near the revivery site. "The more and more we educate people about it, the more and more we can save lives."
Reilly says Sixspeed employees plan to check the site's stock at least weekly, reloading supplies as needed. Eventually, the company hopes to expand the project throughout Minneapolis, asking for donations to make that hope a possibility.
For more information on the "Little Free Revivery" program and how to give, you can visit the Sixspeed website.